‘FG invests N40trn in GOEs without getting commensurate dividend’

The federal government has lamented that despite its huge investment of N40 trillion (circa) in Government Owned Enterprises (GOEs) over the years, what is usually remitted to the Treasury in terms of dividend or surplus at the end of each operating year is mostly insignificant. It pointed out that the record shows that few of the GOEs declare surpluses, resulting in the Nigerian tax payers/general public not benefiting much from these investments in the agencies. The federal government disclosed that out of the total projected sum of N807.57 billion independent revenues in 2017, only N216.66 billion, representing 26.8% performance, was remitted by GOEs and revenue generating MDAs. It stressed that remittances and collections by Government agencies should contribute more significantly to FGN’s revenue. This was made known yesterday in Abuja by the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Mr. Ben Akabueze during a meeting with the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), of Government Owned Enterprises (GOEs). “Despite huge sums the Federal Government has invested (circa N40 trillion) in these agencies, what is usually remitted to the Treasury in terms of dividend or surplus at the end of each operating year is mostly insignificant,” said Akabueze. He said President Muhammadu Buhari-led Administration’s to determination to diversifying the Nigerian Economy away from reliance on oil informed the decision to develop the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP). A critical element of the ERGP, he added is the enhancement of domestic revenue mobilization (DRM). This, he explained would be attained by improvements in both tax policies and collection, as well as significant turnaround in the performance of GOEs. “However, the continuous underperformance of the GOEs has made it difficult to achieve enhanced domestic revenue mobilization from operating surpluses of the GOEs,” he said. The DG Budget Office explained that concerns about financial performance of GOEs gave rise to Executive Order 2 of 2017 and the circular ref SGF.50/S.3/C.9/24 recently issued by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF). He told his audience that the President has mandated that urgent corrective action be taken and, for this reason, he gathered CEOs to chat a way forward. By Joseph Inokotong, Abuja